The Rock and the River: Chapters 3–6

by Kekla Magoon
Growing up in Chicago in the 1960s, Sam is a witness to both racism and the growing Civil Rights Movement. But when his father and brother embrace conflicting tactics for confronting prejudice and violence in their community, Sam must figure out where his loyalties lie.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–2, Chapters 3–6, Chapters 7–11, Chapters 12–21

Here are links to our lists for other books by Kekla Magoon: The Season of Styx Malone, X: A Novel
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. sentiment
    a personal belief or judgment
    “Hey, Sam, you all right?” The sentiment echoed down the school corridors.
  2. confer
    have a meeting in order to talk something over
    Father never conferred with Fred in public—he didn’t know how to whisper.
  3. understatement
    something said in a restrained way for ironic contrast
    “Warm,” she said, flashing me that great half-smile again. "Feel." She put her hands on my cheeks. Warm was an understatement.
  4. amble
    walk leisurely
    "See you around.” Raheem nodded to Maxie, then ambled off.
  5. flustered
    thrown into a state of agitated confusion
    Bucky turned around, flustered. "Excuse me, Officers. I didn't see you.” He started to move on, but one of them held up his hand.
  6. stocky
    having a short and solid form or stature
    “Put your teeth back in your head, boy, 'fore I knock ’em out,” the stockier cop said.
  7. resignation
    acceptance of an unpleasant but inevitable situation
    The radio blasted, covering the silence of disbelief, of resignation.
  8. avert
    turn away or aside
    We averted our eyes, pretending not to notice.
  9. fret
    worry unnecessarily or excessively
    "Baby, don’t fret yourself over one glass. We’ve got others. Get your shoes and just sweep it up.”
  10. grimace
    contort the face to indicate a certain mental state
    Leon grimaced and lowered his voice, glancing over at me. “They beat the living daylights out of him, Roland. For a while there, we weren’t sure he’d even make it, but he’s holding his own.”
  11. platform
    a document stating the principles of a political party
    I skimmed their ten-point platform, the list of things they planned to demand from the government...
  12. decadent
    relating to indulgence in something pleasurable
    We want education for our people that exposes the true nature of this decadent American society.
  13. exempt
    freed from or not subject to an obligation or liability
    We want all black men to be exempt from military service.
  14. ghetto
    a poor densely populated city district
    The pictures showed black people in the ghettos with guns.
  15. militant
    a reformer disposed to hard-line policies
    "It’s not appropriate for you to be involved with these militants. It is reckless behavior that I will not condone."
  16. condone
    excuse, overlook, or make allowances for
    "It’s not appropriate for you to be involved with these militants. It is reckless behavior that I will not condone."
  17. alignment
    the spatial property possessed by things in a straight line
    The block tower's hulking presence across the room distracted me. It was looking a bit ragged these days. Blocks poking out of alignment here and there.
  18. skewed
    having an oblique or slanting direction or position
    A small section of wall looked skewed, almost like it had come down and been rebuilt.
  19. deliberately
    in a careful unhurried manner
    I knelt in front of the tower again. My hands trembled as I reached, gently this time. Deliberately.
  20. churn
    be agitated
    My stomach churned.
  21. nonchalantly
    in a composed and unconcerned manner
    Leaning nonchalantly against the bricks, he watched me come over.
  22. glower
    look angry or sullen as if to signal disapproval
    When we got to our room, Stick didn’t glower at his desk and ignore me like he usually did when he was fighting with Father.
  23. perseverance
    persistent determination
    Father shook his head. "Faith and perseverance got us this far. They’ll take us the rest of the way.”
  24. perpetual
    continuing forever or indefinitely
    A shadow crossed his face whenever anyone mentioned Bucky, and every day it seemed to stay longer, pressing his features into a perpetual frown.
  25. rally
    a large gathering of people intended to arouse enthusiasm
    Dr. King walking not six blocks from here, leading a rally for affordable housing.
  26. sear
    burn slightly and superficially so as to affect color
    The tiny flame glowed as he lit the mouth of a Molotov cocktail. The flame seared the tip of the oiled cloth and sizzled toward the bottleneck. He hurled it, and the fire spread across the storefront in front of us.
  27. pandemonium
    a state of extreme confusion and disorder
    The shouts and pandemonium filled my head.
  28. intently
    with strained or eager attention
    The hand that wasn’t caught in mine stroked the soft fabric of the sofa cushions intently.
  29. flush
    turn red, as if in embarrassment or shame
    “We don’t have a phone,” she mumbled. My face flushed. I hadn’t known. I hadn’t even thought of it.
  30. haggard
    showing the wearing effects of overwork or care or suffering
    His face was haggard, I noticed with alarm.
  31. traipse
    walk or tramp about
    He traipsed in heavily, as if his boundless stamina for pursuing justice had been exhausted.
  32. evade
    escape, either physically or mentally
    Mama stood up and approached him. "You need to rest."
    This time he evaded her embrace. “I will," he said.
  33. tentatively
    in a hesitant manner
    Maxie lay down tentatively, looking like she felt out of place.
  34. refrain
    part of a song or poem that recurs at regular intervals
    The choir began singing "We Shall Overcome,” and everybody joined in. Everybody but me and Stick.
    In the midst of the familiar refrain, a voice behind me broke from the chorus.
  35. disperse
    move away from each other
    The crowd made no move to disperse.
Created on Wed Apr 24 11:47:25 EDT 2019 (updated Thu Apr 25 08:30:47 EDT 2019)

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